Prodigal Son: The Rest of the Story

Inspired by the Parable of Three Choices by Joseph B. Wirthlin

The fatted calf had been killed, and the feast was over. The prodigal son, whose name might have been John, was depressed.

“I have ruined my life,” he said between tortured sobs of self-reproach. He went to his father and poured out his heart.

His father thought for a moment, then looked up and said, “John, I have made three choices in my life that have been of value to me. Perhaps they will help you.”

“Please, tell me, Father” John pleaded. “I will do anything. I just want to start over. I want to go back.”

His father smiled. “The first thing you should understand is that you can’t go back and begin where you once were. But all is not lost. You can begin where you are. Choose to begin your repentance now. Today is the day of decision.”

John promised to follow his father’s advice. Because of his addictions, he knew he needed to improve his health. So he got help in recovery. He began eating nutritious food. He began to walk and do other exercises.

Weeks passed. John was able to free himself from his addictions. His health was improving. But still he was not satisfied. There were so many things about his life that needed improvement that he felt overwhelmed and discouraged. So once again he went to his father. That is when he learned the second choice.

“John,” his father said, “you’ll most likely have a rough time if you think you can make yourself perfect all at once. What you must learn is to choose your priorities. You have to put first things first. We become masters of our lives by focusing on first things first. Everything in wisdom and order.”

John began to understand that he couldn’t change everything that was wrong with his life in an instant, but he could choose his priorities. He could focus on the things that mattered most, and with time his life would begin to improve.

Each night before John went to bed, he made a list of the most important things he needed to accomplish the next day.

Eventually, John was earning a living. He acquired a comfortable home and the means to go to his place of labor. Yet, although he was feeling much better about his life, he still felt that something was missing. So he returned a third time to ask his father.

“The reason you still feel empty,” his father said, “is because you have not made the third choice.”

“What is that?”

“It’s not enough to make choices and decisions, and to work on them each day,” Father continued. Many have spent their lives in productive labor and have accomplished much. But they still feel empty. At the end of their days they lament that their lives had little meaning.”

“I think I know what you mean,” John said.

“It is not enough to do things,” his father said. “We need to do the right things— the things our Heavenly Father would have us do.”

“How do I know what the right things are?” John asked.

His father smiled and pulled out a set of scriptures. The leather cover was scuffed and wrinkled. The gilded edges on the paper were nearly worn away. “Through the scriptures,” he replied. “These are the ‘right things.’ Some believe that the commandments of our Heavenly Father are restrictive and hard. to the contrary, they’re a handbook to happiness.”

As his father was speaking, John thought about his own life. The things he had acquired hadn’t brought him happiness. Perhaps what his father was saying was true. Maybe happiness did come from living in harmony with the commandments of Heavenly Father.

“‘For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?’” his father said.

That very night, John made a commitment to open the word of God and learn for himself the commandments of his Heavenly Father. No longer did he resist the words of the Lord, but rather he embraced and cherished them. As he did, the emptiness in his soul began to shrink, and in its place he gradually discovered joy and peace that surpassed his understanding.

Back to Lesson 4 Adolescent Morality and Peer Influence